1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a linear actuator for beds, slatted beds or chairs and to a bed, a mattress support or a chair which includes the linear actuator.
2. The Prior Art
Adjustment of backrest and legrest sections of beds on the basis of electric motors has been well-known for years with respect to hospital and nursing beds. The implementation in beds for domestic use gathered momentum only with the development of the type of actuators which is described in, e.g., WO 89/10715 to Dewert Antriebs- und Systemtechnik and DE 38 42 078 to Dietmar Koch. These actuators are based on two individual drive mechanisms driven by their respective electric motors and mounted separately at their respective ends of a common cabinet.
The structure disclosed in WO 03/055359 to Cimosys departs from the idea of having a motor for each drive mechanism. Here, there is a common motor with coupling mechanisms so that the one or the other spindle, respectively, may be driven. However, there are still two fundamentally identical, separate drive mechanisms.
The object of the invention is to provide a structure of these actuators which may create the basis for a single and inexpensive product.